Lord of the Ring

Details on the specifics of the building are slim, but based on futuristic renderings, the headquarters has already been likened to a spaceship.

If nothing else, the Apple design wizards cranking out those must-have gadgets for the geek-chic set know style. Simple and functional design icons like the iPod, MacBook Air, iPad and iPhone have cemented Apple's status as the high-tech choice for those who view technology as practical fashion. It follows that Apple's proposed new headquarters should appear as sleek, efficient and effortless as its products, and that's probably what will be seen based on the plans drawn up by Norman Foster, the British architect responsible for modern masterpieces like London's 30 St Mary Axe building and the Hearst Tower in Midtown Manhattan. Apple bought a chunk of land from Hewlett-Packard in Cupertino, Calif., to secure the required space for the new HQ. The campus will be 150 acres and the building will house 13,000 employees. The ring-shaped structure prompted many in the media to label the building a "spaceship." Apple CEO Steve Jobs reportedly specified a design suggesting an alien craft landing in an open field. But not everyone is sold. San Jose Mercury News reporter John Pastier compared it to Facebook, saying the social networking giant's "employee-centered, interactive approach seems more promising than [Apple's] mechanistic sci-fi vision. Will the spaceship provide an alternative to the industry's ubiquitous cubicles? Will it foster staff interaction and creative exchange? Will navigating miles of corridors help productivity?" Images courtesy of Foster + Partners and Apple.

Nathan Eddy is Associate Editor, Midmarket, at eWEEK.com. Before joining eWEEK.com, Nate was a writer with ChannelWeb and he served as an editor at FierceMarkets. He is a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.